I'm a woman and I pick my breasts! Does anyone else?

I pick at my breasts too and it has affected my life more than any other area I pick at. I started about 1 or 2 years ago. I don't remember why I started picking there in the first place but to me it's become the most addictive. Considering that I am young and girls my age like to show off their boobs by wearing low cut shirts, I often feel left out. I can't wear anything low cut because of my scars. What makes this worse is the fact that I have a petite figure but very large breasts. My friends always pick out somewhat revealing clothes for me or tell me I need to flaunt what I've got and stop dressing so conservatively, but they don't understand that even though I want to, I can't. Picking at that area has also kept me from getting intimate with anyone. I currrently have a boyfriend but I've never let him see or even feel my boobs because I'm terrified he will think I'm disgusting and leave me for someone who is scar free.

I am so glad I found this forum and post. I am 45 and have been skin picking since puberty (probably earlier). I mainly pick the chest and breast area and have been doing this since my late teens. I have recently been doing a lot of self watching: writing down when I pick, my thoughts and feelings (that's when I'm lucky enough to catch them), triggers, picking routine etc... Due to me mainly picking in the bathroom in the evening and getting into a trance state I have removed all mirrors from my flat except the one in the bathroom but I have taken out the bright fluorescent light above the one mirror which created perfect light for finding all blemishes and imperfections large and small. The only lighting is an overhead light that limits my close inspection which lead to picking marathons. I have put an egg timer in the bathroom and as soon as I enter I set it for 10mins sometimes I go straight to the mirror and start to pick or as with picking my breasts I don't always use the mirror; regardless I will try and set the timer as soon as I can tear myself away. When it loudly goes off it snaps me out of the trance like state, if the urges are strong I'll reset but often than not this is enough to jolt me out of the trance, take deep breaths, avoid mentally beating myself up and make the choice to stop (it puts me at the mental cross roads to leave or continue and the choice is hard but it allows space for this choice). This year I have been 18days skin picking free, then I erratically began picking my breast again. The past week I have been relatively 'free' of skin picking except 3 very small sessions 15mins, 5mins and 3mins until last night when I gave in to a 2hr session. This morning my chest although blemished and sore is not as bad as it would of been if I hadn't had the days free of skin picking. Other things I am trying to do is relieve anxiety and stress by practicing meditation and attending hot yoga which is great for getting rid of clogged pores but be aware initially as it will bring out spots as you detox. Hot yoga as well as keeping my anxiety at bay encourages me to drink lots of water which is also great for clearing up the skin. I know false nails can help some people but I cut my nails very short which limits the damage I cause to my breast. I know I will always have a scarred and blemished chests but the human body if given the chance will heal and improve the texture and look of the skin. After 18days of not picking my skin looked and felt loads better. Today is a new day and I am going to start again. Another one of my triggers is coffee because it over stimulates me and interferes with my sleep (I had 2 expressos yesterday) so I am going to give up coffee for the next days. I hope some of this is of help, I know everyone's path to stopping this destructive, depressing habit is different but please have hope and be kind to yourself. For every negative destructive thought you hold of yourself find positive affirmations to counter them, talk to your self as if to a dear friend or family and try and stop negative mental dialogue. Easier said then done to break the vicious cycle but by not being so hard on myself helps me a lot to stay focus and avoid hacking away at my skin. See your beauty, see your value, nurture and grow and share your journey. ;) x ps has anyone got any tips for helping to stop?

My main areas used to be my chest/breasts, upper back, buttocks, and face. It was very upsetting for me in high school because my breasts have always been my best asset. Finally, about my senior year in high school, I decided that enough was enough--I managed to stop picking for a few weeks, and my buttocks and chest healed extremely well. I also used Mederma, and even the scars went away. Sadly, though, I continued to struggle with my face almost everyday, and I'd have an episode with my upper back every month or so. Now, at 22, I still struggle with my face, and every once in a while I'll mess with a closed pore on my chest/breast or back, but for the most part, those areas stay sore-free. I'm very glad that I found this forum to hear stories of people who suffer just like me. It allows me to feel more open to sharing my story, which comforts me and is helping me to overcome this compulsion. I hope it has done the same for you.

I also just discovered this site :) I too pick my breasts. Especially the area where the nipple meets the skin. It is not my worse picking. I primarily focus on my arms and legs. My breasts for some reason also seem to heal faster then other parts of my body. Maybe because they are covered up more often.

wow-It's so great knowing that there are others like me out here... I am 22 years old and I have been picking since I was17. I'm sure it had something to do with my family (my parents were getting a divorce and I rarely had a parent at home). I started picking at my back, when an acne flare gave me that first "opportunity" to pick. from then it led to my buttocks, and then to my breasts. I have tried to quit so many times, that I'm so disheartened at this whole situation... I don't want to go to someone who's just going to drug me up on anti-depressants. that isn't what I need. I am getting married in July and all I truly want is to be scab free for my husband. I want to be able to get my nails done without having to rip them off in order to pick. I'm sure he has noticed that I pick (he commented on my buttocks but I said I just scar easily), but he hasn't really asked me about it or anything. I have to pretend to get angry, or find a way of leaving my bra on and not letting him see my buttocks if/when we are intimate. This hurts so bad... I would love to talk with anyone about this---I have facebook, yahoo, and just plain old email... I would love to have someone to help me out...

wow, its really crazy how for so long i thought i was the only one who picked at my skin. i started skin picking when i was 11 years old and now i am 17. in the beginning though i started picking at my arms and face. eventually as the years passed on it got worse and i began picking at my breasts, legs, and now even my pubic area. im so ashamed i dread going to the doctors for a physical examination or even changing in gym class. i have no idea how to tell my mother that i pick at other areas because she only thinks i do it to my arms. she gets upset with me and yells at me teling me to just stop but i tell her its not that easy. i wish i could definitely talk to someone about this because ive only told one person, my best friend but even he doesnt know the full extent of my skin picking problem. ive read previous comments of women who started at my age and havent stopped and they are now in their 40s. i seriously DONT want to end up at that age and still be picking. i want this to be over and done with ASAP. i just have no idea what steps to take to stop. this has taken over my life, i have few friends, i never want to go out and ive even thought of suicide. i feel so worthless and i need help. any advice?

I pick at anything that even remotely resembles a bump/pimple. I can't even remember when I started... it's been so long. I'm 20 now. The two most effected areas are my face and my boobs. I pick at my boobs more because I can hide it a lot more easily... but I get so self-conscious in intimate situations with guys. I have big boobs so they are always really eager to get my bra off, but I never want to take it off because I know they will just be disgusted by the scabs and scars. I really need to stop :(

I have come to this site once or twice before and was seeking answers or wanting to find other people like me. I have recently talked to my doctor about this and that I do it, the anxiety meds that she put me on really don't always control the urges. I have been picking since I was around 11 is the earliest that I can actively remember doing it on a conscious level. My parents had a playground swing set in the backyard and i had really gashed the back of my leg very deeply with an uncovered screw when I was hanging upside down and flipping off the set. I remember it healing and the scab started to tighten around the skin and I was sitting in the bathroom on the carpet and started to pick. There was just a sense of release that i felt. I grew up in a very emotioally and mentally abusive home with a bi polar mother, undiagonsed because she refuses to seek medical treatment. I am now 30 years old and have been picking since that first time. I always had scars that never healed and I really didn't realize that I was doing damage to my body until I was in my college years. Up until that point it was minor, scratches or cuts that happened on accident that I really just never let fully heal. I started tanning when I was in my early 20s, since I am a redhead I burned and started to peel...then the peeling developed into a sore and a sore a picking spot. I was mainly on my boobs, yes as the woman mentioned in the earlier posts it was because it was easily hidden from others. I am trying to figure out what is the psychological reason as for why it is that I do this. I was raped by my boyfriend during my freshman year in college and that is when I think the cycle of picking my boobs started. I have several scars, three currently active right now that I'm trying to let heal putting on cream at night with band aids and such. I really am trying hard to figure out or work through issues, memories that I have suppressed and haven't been able to ever talk about. I am wondering if anyone else had similar trauma in their past. I also pick my stomach and scalp, but mainly my boobs, all places are easy to cover up. The cuts I get or scraps I get on other places of my body I do let heal naturally....so why those areas?